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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Mary Glindon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Mary Glindon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mary Glindon on 2015-09-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the (a) total and (b) average monthly cost has been of the nationally co-ordinated detached duty scheme for prison officers since that scheme’s introduction.

    Andrew Selous

    Using centrally held financial records it is not possible, without incurring disproportionate cost, to determine the costs of the nationally coordinated detached duty scheme.

    Information on the average monthly provision of Band 3 to 5 prison officers received as part of the nationally coordinated detached duty scheme, since November 2013, are shown in the table below. November 2013 was the first full month of the nationally coordinated detached duty scheme.

    Average provision of Band 3 to 5 Prison Officers on detached duty to public sector prisons in England & Wales, November 2013 – June 2015

    Month

    Equivalent Full Time Officers

    Nov 2013

    110

    Dec 2013

    210

    Jan 2014

    210

    Feb 2014

    160

    Mar 2014

    130

    Apr 2014

    210

    May 2014

    160

    Jun 2014

    170

    Jul 2014

    230

    Aug 2014

    240

    Sep 2014

    230

    Oct 2014

    240

    Nov 2014

    230

    Dec 2014

    240

    Jan 2015

    260

    Feb 2015

    230

    Mar 2015

    210

    Apr 2015

    190

    May 2015

    260

    Jun 2015

    270

    All figures in the tables are rounded to the nearest 10, with numbers ending in 5 rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias. Rounding to 10 accurately depicts the level of certainty that is held with these figures. Values of 5 or fewer are denoted as ‘~’

  • Adam Afriyie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Adam Afriyie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Adam Afriyie on 2015-09-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if the Government will introduce a cap on the amount of public money used to fund surface access costs arising from the construction of a new airport runway at Heathrow and Gatwick airports.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Government is currently considering the large amount of very detailed analysis contained in the Airports Commission’s final report, including its examination of the costs and financing of the schemes, before taking any decisions on next steps.

    In terms of surface access proposals, the Government has been clear that it expects the scheme promoter to meet the costs of any surface access proposals that are required as a direct result of airport expansion and from which they will directly benefit.

  • Andy Sawford – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Andy Sawford – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Sawford on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much funding his Department provided to billing authorities for council tax support schemes in (a) 2013-14 and (b) 2014-15.

    Brandon Lewis

    The Government provided £3.3 billion to local authorities for localised council tax support in 2013-14 and has made available the same amount in 2014-15.

  • Stephen O’Brien – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Stephen O’Brien – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen O’Brien on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to the Answer for 4 March 2014, Official Report, column 765W, on carbon emissions, to which other technologies that Answer refers to; and whether this would still be the case if the carbon footprint of backup technologies was factored in.

    Gregory Barker

    Onshore wind power has a very small carbon footprint range relative to other energy generation technologies, including coal and gas-fired generation, which, in 2012, emitted, on average, 895 g/kWh and 415 g/kWh respectively (not allowing for emissions incurred during the manufacture, construction and decommissioning phases)1.

    The Department does not estimate the gas turbine energy contribution (and therefore related CO2 emissions) associated with the reserve generation needed to manage wind variability specifically, due to complex inter-dependencies of the power system operational parameters. However, the need for reserve generation to manage intermittent supply and demand of electricity does not change the fact that any electricity generated by onshore wind – which in the first quarter of 2014 accounted for around 7% of all electricity generated in the UK – has a carbon footprint of just 8 and 20g CO2eq/kWh. Reserve generation displaces the output of existing generating stations to maintain the balance of supply and demand, so there is no net increase of power on the system at any one time; therefore the only additional emissions from reserve associated with wind power is through the inefficiency of running separate generating stations at part load rather than fewer stations at full-load, which is relatively insignificant compared to the carbon savings made.

    [1]Coal and Gas emissions factors from table DUKES 5C, available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/electricity-chapter-5-digest-of-united-kingdom-energy-statistics-dukes

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  • Stephen O’Brien – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Stephen O’Brien – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen O’Brien on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the explicit monetary value per quality-adjusted life was in the context of ‘Evaluation of new pharmaceutical products or medical devices’, as quoted as part of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s submission to Inter-departmental Group for the Valuation of Life and Health review in 2008.

    Dr Daniel Poulter

    I refer my Rt. hon. Friend to the answer given on 26 June 2014, Official Report, column 283W.

  • Mike Weatherley – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Mike Weatherley – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Weatherley on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what measures are currently in place to record the number of missed GP appointments.

    Dr Daniel Poulter

    Information is not collected centrally on the number of missed general practitioner (GP) appointments. This is a matter for local organisations. However, NHS England estimates that each year around 12 million GP appointments are missed, at a cost to the system of £162 million.

    In order to reduce the number of missed GP appointments, the Prime Minister’s Challenge Fund is supporting pilots to ensure appointments are as convenient as possible for the patient. The pilots will offer millions more patients evening and weekend GP appointments, as well as introducing initiatives, such as email and Skype consultations.

  • David Hanson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    David Hanson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Hanson on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the statement of 24 June 2014, Official Report, column 206, on student visas, whether she is seeking financial compensation from the Educational Testing Service.

    James Brokenshire

    Investigations are on-going and all potential remedies are being pursued.

  • Paul Flynn – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Paul Flynn – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will publish all impact assessments his Department has made on privatising the Ministry of Justice Shared Services in Newport.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    The Ministry of Justice are entering into detailed discussions with Shared Services Connected Limited (SSCL) regarding the future delivery of their back office services, with the intention of awarding a contract in August 2014. We expect this to bringincreased savings and efficiency in back-office functions, provide further benefits across wider Government and offer better value for money to the tax payer.

    Prior to this decision, the two private sector options were compared against the option to remain a standalone organisation and assessed using evaluation criteria that considered IT, cost, staff impacts and the service to our customers. The assessments will not be published as they are commercially sensitive documents.

    We will continue to work with staff, trade unions and other stakeholders to assess any impacts on staff.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Alex Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what role (a) his Department and (b) local authorities will have in (i) specifying and (ii) managing the new franchises for rail passenger services on the (A) TransPennine Express and (B) Northern Rail lines.

    Stephen Hammond

    The specification for each franchise is being developed collaboratively by the Department for Transport’s Rail Executive and Rail North. Rail North are representing all the local transport authorities in the North of England. This is line with the partnership agreement confirmed between the Secretary of State and leaders of the local transport authorities in the North of England in January 2014. An integrated partnership structure between Rail Executive and Rail North is being developed with a view to managing the franchise once it has been let.

  • Debbie Abrahams – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Debbie Abrahams – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Debbie Abrahams on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much the (a) Competition Commission and (b) Office of Fair Trading spent on assessing mergers in the NHS in (a) 2012-13 and (b) 2013-14.

    Jo Swinson

    The Competition Commission’s (CC’s) inquiry into the proposed merger between Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals Foundation Trust and Poole Hospital Foundation Trust, which was concluded in 2013/14, was the Commission’s only assessment of an NHS Foundation Trust merger. The cost of this inquiry was £710,000, which includes the cost of the staff on the inquiry amounting to £639,000 and direct costs of £71,000 (including survey costs).

    The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) did not collect specific information on the resources used in considering mergers involving NHS Foundation Trusts. However, the average approximate cost involved in scrutiny of a merger by the OFT was £20,000; in total, the OFT considered four mergers involving NHS Foundation Trusts in 2012-13 and 2013-14, of which only one was referred for further scrutiny by the CC.